The embodiments described herein relate to systems and methods for separating unwanted matter from mixtures to obtain substantially pure substances. More particularly, the embodiments described herein relate to systems and methods for separating inorganic salts, trace metals, dissolved gases and/or other impurities from liquids with minimal external thermal energy.
In general, purification of, for example, a fluid is based on the principle of using a substance's intrinsic properties to isolate it from a heterogeneous mixture. Some known purification systems use distillation, utilizing thermal energy and a substance's distinct boiling point, to separate a mixture. Distillation, however, uses a large amount of external energy, and thus, is often resource-intensive and/or relatively expensive. Other known purification systems use reverse osmosis, employing semipermeable membranes and high pressure, to separate a mixture. While many reverse osmosis purification systems do not require much external energy (e.g., thermal energy), the semipermeable membranes are often susceptible to sudden ruptures and/or gradual deterioration, which can require frequent and/or expensive maintenance.
Thus, a need exists for a purification system that is relatively low maintenance and that uses a relatively small amount of external energy (e.g., thermal energy).